Seychellois women running their own businesses are being invited to join a national association for women entrepreneurs.

The creation of the association will allow Seychelles to integrate the regional network affiliated to the World Association of Women Entrepreneurs (FCEM). The FCEM regional network will regroup all women entrepreneur associations from Mauritius, Rodrigues, Reunion, Madagascar and the Comoros.

Following their participation at the FCEM 51st World Congress held between October 1 and 4 in Port-Louis, Mauritius, Mrs Cecile Berlouis, who runs the l'Imprimerie St Fidèle, and Mrs Jane Camille, who manages Sunstroke, are resolved to see all Seychellois women entrepreneurs regroup under one umbrella organisation.

If Seychelles could have its own association Mrs Berlouis said, it would lead the way in the setting up of the network in a regional women entrepreneur conference scheduled to take place here in May next year.

The Indian Ocean regional network is to be used as a platform to promote exchanges, ideas, knowledge and experience between women in business and provide support for entrepreneurs who want to start or expand their businesses, but lacked certain skills.

Seychelles' affiliation with the FCEM, Mrs Berlouis observed, would help to further elevate working women's status in the country and could be seen as an incentive to encourage others who are not working to become financially dependent by starting, for example, their own small cottage business.

She told Business Nation that Seychelles had a very large pool of women who own and run their own businesses such as day care centres, hairdressing salons, beauty salons, travel agencies, hotels, restaurants, guesthouses, tailoring, manufacturing, pastries, souvenirs, boutiques, and others.

Such a wide representation, she said, showed that women's contribution in the country's economic development and in the creation of employment was as important as that of men's.

The association will also be open to women who are employed but are involved on a part-time basis in more leisurely occupations, like the making of confectionery or hot snacks.

"The association will be used to create a greater synergy among women entrepreneurs in Seychelles. It can be used as a platform to enable them to voice out their concerns, share their experience as working mothers and women in business, and maybe, despite the competition that exists, reach out and assist their colleagues in difficulties," Mrs Berlouis explained.

The Congress, which was itself a first-time experience for the two local business-women, was hosted by the National Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Mauritius (AMFCE) and held under the theme "FCEM: Partners in Peace and Shared Prosperity."

It attracted the participation of representatives of women associations from over 50 countries, including USA, Great Britain, China, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Egypt, Malaysia, South Africa and Switzerland.

FCEM itself is divided into regional bodies headed by commissioners.

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